Carlos Alcaraz, the reigning champion of this year’s first two Grand Slams, and Naomi Osaka have both been knocked out of the US Open at Flushing Meadows.
Alcaraz crumbled to a 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 defeat against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp on Thursday, while Osaka slipped to a 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) loss to Czech Karolina Muchova, the world No 52.
Unseeded van de Zandschulp, currently ranked world No 74, was a huge underdog against a player who had won 15 straight Grand Slam matches and fans at Arthur Ashe Stadium could scarcely believe their eyes as Alcaraz dished out error after error in the shock loss.
“Today I was playing against the opponent, and I was playing against myself, you know, in my mind,” Alcaraz said. “I mean, a lot of emotions that I couldn’t control.”
Alcaraz was bidding to become the third man in history after Rod Laver and Rafael Nadal to win the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same calendar year.
“I was up in some points. Then I lose some points. I get down. It was a rollercoaster, let’s say, in my mind,” added the world number three.
Alcaraz admitted that van de Zandschulp, 28, surprised him with his level of play.
“He didn’t make a lot of mistakes that I thought he was going to do,” Alcaraz said. “So I was, you know, confusing a little bit. I didn’t know how to manage that, how to deal with it.
The 21-year-old said it’s not the first time he’s felt unable to take control of a match.
“I’m thinking right now that I’m not changing, and that’s the problem,” Alcaraz said. “So I have to think about it, I have to learn about it.”
Translation: Thank you Carlitos, we will see you next time.
Alcaraz, who won silver at the Paris Olympics after losing to Novak Djokovic, said he needed a longer break before going to Flushing Meadows.
Van de Zandschulp was contemplating retirement less than three months ago after several injuries.
“I’m still processing it,” he said of his win. “Maybe in a couple of hours or tomorrow, I’ll feel a little bit more emotional with what happened tonight.”
Osaka’s stalled comeback
For Osaka, her comeback from maternity leave remains stalled.
She missed last year’s tournament after giving birth to daughter Shai but made up for that absence in the first round when she brushed aside Jelena Ostapenko for a first top-10 win in four years.
However, on Thursday the 26-year-old went down to a straight sets loss to Muchova, leaving her without a third-round appearance at the majors since the 2022 Australian Open.
“It’s been a little difficult because obviously I can only gauge how I’m doing by results. I feel faster. I feel better, but I lost in the second round. So it’s a little rough,” said Osaka.
Muchova will meet Russia’s Anastasia Potapova for a last-16 spot.
“Honestly this year the biggest win for me is that I could play again,” said Muchova, who picked up a wrist injury at last year’s US Open which sidelined her for nine months.
